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Publication:AGE, Edition:NATAGE, Page:D034 34 theform Typeset On PDF5001 at 7/11/2008 12:10:16 AM by TOToole PageType:A3Proof THE AGE FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2008 Scenic runs to lead in sires’ race By JOHN HOLLOWAY THERE’S a new leader in the 2008-09 Australian stallions’ premiership race, with Scenic clear- ing out by $1 million from the big two — Encosta De Lago and Redoute’s Choice — after his son Viewed won theMelbourne Cup. Scenic, foaled in Ireland in 1986, died in March 2005 at Durham Lodge, Western Australia, where he was the highest-priced stallion standing in the state at $16,500 after transferring from Victoria. Scenic has invariably had a top- notch galloper representing him, and in the 2007-08 sires’ premier- ship he was fifth on $5,689,941, with Encosta De Lago,More Than Ready, Flying Spur and Zabeel the only stallions ahead of him. Before the Melbourne Cup, Hot Danish (Danny Nikolic) wins the Salinger Stakes at Flemington last Saturday. PICTURE: VINCE CALIGIURI ‘Danish’ continues hot streak David Parker has been a quiet achiever in the breeding business. I N MAY 2005, auctioneer William Inglis and Son held the annual yearling sale in Scone, Australia’s thoroughbred capital, cataloguing 200 lots at the old White Park racecourse. Of those, only one, lot 151, did not possess at least a black-type horse on its catalogue page, in this case over five generations— indicating at least a placing in a stakes race. Since that day, the filly, now named Hot Danish, who sold for $32,000, has won eight of 12 starts, with her win in last Saturday’s group 2 Salinger Stakes at Flem- ington a career highlight for her breeder, David Parker. Parker, 66, a retired Kempsey accountant, has been breeding horses for 40 years and while it may appear success has been a long time coming, nothing could be further from the truth. ‘‘I’ve bred 16 city winners and 12 indi- vidual winners at Randwick. I love breeding horses,’’ Parker said. His entry into the breeding scene came after the end of a foot- ball season when he received $400 as recompense for his on-field efforts over the previous six months. Rather than fritter away the cash at the pub or TAB, Parker bided his time before heading to the yearling sales in Sydney early arrived on the racing scene two years ago. Having had the the family so ANDREW GARVEY BLOODLINES the next year. He sat through three days of selling before buying the last lot for $500. By Nikalapko, a son of Wilkes, the filly Nickel Lass didn’t have the strongest of pedigrees but that didn’t stop her running. She won 17 races, including one in Sydney, and at stud produced nine winners, including Kaoru King, winner of 17 races, and Luke’s Son, who won 15. After the encouraging start, Parker ventured to a yearlings sale in Adelaide on the lookout for a filly or two he could later breed with. ‘‘I was looking for a speed- bred filly that I could later send to stud and the prices in Sydney were a bit too dear,’’ Parker said. He bought a filly by Crepone, a son of Crepello who failed to make much of an impact in Australia but who does feature as the sire of the second dam of AJC Oaks winner My Brilliant Star. The filly also had a similar non-commercial pedigree to Parker’s first yearling purchase. It didn’t stop the filly, named Hot Fantasy, running, either, and she won 21 races on the NSW country circuit. Parker has continued to breed with Hot Fantasy’s descendants ever since but despite winner after winner emerging, there had not been one black-type winner or placegetter until Hot Danish long, Parker knows it backwards and says there have been several stakes-quality horses who fell by the wayside without reaching that status. Bleeders, broken legs, bad bar- riers, bad rides and bad luck. Parker can relate plenty of stories about the races that could or should have been won but there are no footnotes about those in sales catalogues. Parker has raced many of the horses he has bred but did sell Hot Danish’s second dam, a Kaoru Star filly, as a yearling for $30,000. She had seven starts that failed to return a cheque but Parker had kept his eye on her and was aware I’ve bred 16 city winners and 12 individual winners at Randwick. outstanding three-year-old would be a good match for her. He sent the first foal, a colt, to the Sydney Classic sale in 2002 and asked trainer Max Lees, who had trained its dam, to run it up to $15,000. ‘‘Max rang back later and said I bought it. I love it,’’ Parker said, with Lees buying it for $18,000. Again, the catalogue doesn’t say that the colt showed plenty of ability but died before he made to the races. Hot ‘N’ Breezy’s second foal was bought by Les Bridge for $11,000 at the Scone sales. In his first six starts, he won DAVID PARKER that she was another who had more ability than her record showed. ‘‘I knew she had had some problems but after she had been at stud for a couple of years, I got an agent to approach her owners and bought her back for $2500.’’ The mare, Only Make Believe, bred five winners for him includ- ing Hot Danish’s dam Hot ‘N’ Breezy, a daughter of Zephyr Zip. She won four races including one at Randwick before being retired to stud. Parker is a shareholder in Noth- in’ Leica Dane and felt the former and ran second three times in Syd- ney before bleeding. After a long spell, he resumed with a second to a subsequent group 3 winner but bled again, which brought down the curtain on his racing days. Bridge obviously had a good early opinion of him as he returned to Scone the next year to buy Hot Danish. Parker has a half-brother in work by Half Hennessy, as well as a two-year-old sister. This year, Hot ‘N’ Breezy has produced another Nothin’ Leica Dane filly and has returned to him again on the advice of Bridge. ‘‘Les (Bridge) said to me, ‘Why go to anything else when she produces perfect specimens by Nothin’ Leica Dane?’,’’ he said. Parker says the ‘‘experts’’ tell him the two-year-old is a better type than Hot Danish and the foal better again. Future yearling catalogues will show whether that is the case in terms of racing per- formance. As for hard-luck stories, Parker will be the man to ask. Scenic had been represented by 98 runners for 25 winners with prize- money totalling $1,144,359, but he breezed past Redoute’s Choice and Encosta De Lago, with the first prizemoney and trophies totalling $3,450,000 taking his earnings to more than $4.6 million. WORKING THE ANGLES ‘‘HE had plenty of range and scope, and I thought he was worth a punt at $50,000,’’ said Dato Tan Chin Nam’s racing adviser, Duncan Ramage, a day after Viewed’s Mel- bourne Cup win. Ramage bought Viewed, by Scenic from Lovers Knot, from a paddock in 2004 as a yearling, and some $3,938,530 in prizemoney later, the five-year-old entire has the credentials to suggest a possible stud career at Dato Tan Chin Nam’s Think Big Stud in Bowral. ‘‘The colt seemed to have all the right angles . . . there was something about him I really liked,’’ Ramage said. ‘‘But to win a Melbourne and Brisbane cup with him has been something which has obviously exceeded all expectations.’’ Some 18 months ago, Viewed might have been sold, with Hong Kong interests offering $600,000 after he scored his second win at Rosehill. He won again at Rosehill a fortnight later and the price went up accordingly, but connections decided against selling. GREAT SUPPORTER KENNETH T. Jones jnr, a great advocate of Australian racing, has died in his home country of Guam, aged 90. Jones was a combat vet- eran ofWorldWar II and was one of the first inductees of the Guam Business Hall of Fame due to his wonderful contributions to the country. He was an avid racing supporter and owned Domino Stud in Kentucky, with his biggest US suc- cess being the Arkansas Derby with Sir Cherokee. In Australia, he raced many top-liners, including Golden Slipper winner Catbird, Slipper runner-up Clan O’Sullivan, Kenny’s Best Pal, India’sDream and Juanmo. High resolution NATAGE D034